DHX Media has appointed veteran animation industry executive, Amir Nasrabadi as executive vice president and general manager of its animation studio in Vancouver, British Columbia.
In his new role effective from 10 June, Nasrabadi will be reporting to DHX Media president Josh Scherba. As EVP and GM of the Vancouver studio, the animation veteran from Illumination, Paramount and Disney, will oversee all animation production at the studio, leading the animation team in working closely with DHX Media’s creative, content and brands teams.
Nasrabadi brings over 20 years’ experience in production, operations, finance and strategy in the animation and visual effects industry, having held senior roles with some of the world’s top production companies and studios.
Commenting on this appointment, Scherba said, “As a well-known and respected figure in the animation community, who brings a wealth of industry experience, Nasrabadi is an ideal executive to lead the talented team at our Vancouver animation studio. We believe his history as head of Pixar Canada in Vancouver, as well as his time in management with Illumination, Paramount and Disney will deliver tremendous value to our business. We couldn’t be more delighted that Nasrabadi is coming back to Vancouver, and we look forward to welcoming him to the DHX Media team.”
Most recently, Nasrabadi was the EVP of finance and operations for Illumination, producers of global hits as Despicable Me, Minions, The Grinch and Sing. There, he led all aspects of operations, IT, finance, planning, competitive and industry analysis, and business development. Prior to that, he was SVP of production at Paramount Animation, and before that he also worked for 15 years with The Walt Disney Studios, where he was VP Finance and Operations for DisneyToon Studios, and then in 2009, launched and ran Pixar Canada in Vancouver. As VP and general manager of Pixar Canada, he oversaw all production and represented the Pixar brand to the creative community, local and provincial government and industry leaders.
“Vancouver is such a fantastic city for animation and I am thrilled to be joining DHX Media to be part of the exciting work being done at their world-class studio. I hear the studio is a dog-friendly work space as well, so my mini-dachshund Dot will fit right in!” added Nasrabadi.
Dedicated to creating the highest quality animated kids content, DHX Media’s 75,000 square foot animation studio in Vancouver is a state-of-the-art facility employing approximately 500 2D- and 3D-animation professionals. Located in Vancouver’s Olympic Village, in the vibrant Mt. Pleasant neighbourhood, the five-story facility was custom built by DHX Media and opened in 2017.
The studio produced over 1,800 minutes of animated content in 2018, including such series as The Deep, Mega Man: Fully Charged, Carmen Sandiego for Netflix, Peabody & Sherman and The Adventures of Rocky & Bullwinkle for DreamWorks, and its first feature film, My Little Pony: The Movie for Hasbro. The studio team is currently working hard on new Peanuts content for Apple, as well as Chip and Potato for Netflix, Blaze and the Monster Machines for Nickelodeon, and Dorg Van Dango for Nickelodeon with Cartoon Saloon.
